Brian Cody fears Kilkenny's championship preparations could be disrupted by new GAA calender

Kilkenny manager Brian Cody with the Corn Ui Dhuill Cup that he won as captain of St Kieran's College team in 1971 during the Top Oil Leinster Senior A Hurling Championship Launch at St Kieran's College in Kilkenny (Image: Matt Browne/Sportsfile)

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Brian Cody fears that Kilkenny's championship preparations could be badly disrupted under new GAA fixture regulations.

The decision to keep April as a free month for clubs has come under fire from some intercounty managers.

Add that to the new-look round robin provincial championships, Cody predicts that 2018 will be a "learning process" for all concerned but would prefer a root and branch review of the club and county fixture lists.

"You have to look at the calendar for the whole thing - club, county - and come up with a solution," said the Cats supremo.

"I don't have a solution but I do think the way club matches were ran in Kilkenny forever, if you like, has been good and has catered for the club well.

"It definitely doesn't improve things from Kilkenny's point of view but I think the clubs were happy with it.

"At the end of the day, you still do your work, you do your training. You have your dates and gear towards those.

"But really, the amount of time for training is certainly cut back (for the county panel). Walsh Cup is very, very early, you have the league then straight away and it’s Sunday after Sunday pretty much.

"April is then club month. Once you hit Leinster championship, it’s Sunday after Sunday after Sunday. The amount of training you’ll be doing in between? You won’t be, essentially.

"You’ll play a match, recover and then get ready for the next game. That will happen for five or six weeks. It’s important that between now and Walsh Cup, teams will be looking to get a base for themselves."

Cody, who confirmed that Kilkenny won't pull out of the Walsh Cup, continued: "I think the club has to be looked after, respected.

"If April is going to be the only time that club players are going to get to play, until teams are out of the championship, it will have to be treated properly. It changes things.

"From a Kilkenny point of view it changes things a lot because matches always went ahead in April, May, June, August and September.

"Now it’s a question of, play matches in April then wait until you’re out of the championship. That could happen in July, August, September. Who knows?

"It’s more uncertain, certainly from our point of view, for club players for the coming year.

"If it is meant to be decided that April is for the clubs, then it’s for the clubs.

"But obviously the county board will decide what sort of clubs will be fixed for April - hopefully they seem to be considering playing two rounds of the club in April which certainly I’ll won’t have a problem with, because the club has to be looked after essentially".